Millions of children will wake up Christmas morning, bound out of bed, and tear apart paper and ribbons to reveal toys and books that will inspire them to play, to wonder, and to dream. Across Greater Boston, some 35,000 girls and boys will open gifts left for them by Globe Santa, who has been doing the heavy lifting on their behalf since 1956.
“Globe Santa is all about that special moment when children realize . . . that they’re going to get Christmas gifts under the tree,’’ said Bill Connolly, the director of the program who oversees the acquisition, packaging, promotion, and distribution of more than 100,000 presents each year. (Think of Santa in his workshop.)
Connolly’s team begins its Christmas season in February, when buyers visit the annual toy shows to select an assortment of the right gifts for the holiday.
In March, the Massachusetts Department of Transitional Assistance and about 100 other social service agencies begin identifying eligible families and confirming additional details so that the children in deserving families will receive presents appropriate to gender and age.
That same month, the team develops a marketing plan and begins coordinating with the organizers of events that regularly support Globe Santa.
As summer winds down, the Department of Transitional Assistance notifies families of their eligibility, and that activates the writing of the thousands of letters Globe Santa receives each year.
In November, workers in the Globe building begin packing gifts for deliveries that start during Thanksgiving week.
Tammy McFarland leads the team that reads each letter and processes donations of toys, winter clothing, and school supplies.
“Our letters directly reflect what you see in the headlines,’’ McFarland said. “This year, I would say that in every 10th letter you see the word ‘opioid.’ It’s about the drug crisis, and it’s affecting grandparents that have custody of their children, great-grandparents.’’
Health care and day-care expenses also weigh on local families, McFarland said. When she began this work six years ago amid the Great Recession, many letters mentioned foreclosures and unemployment. “It breaks our heart all the time . . . and that’s what makes you want to do this even more,’’ she said.
The Globe newsroom joins in on Thanksgiving Day with the first in a series of stories that will quote from the family letters and from the generous sentiments of contributors to give an insight into the spirit that animates Globe Santa: people helping people in need.
Tom Mulvoy, the editor who assigns the articles and coordinates the photo selections, retired as a Globe managing editor in 2000 after a 35-year career at the newspaper, but last year Connolly asked him to return to help with Globe Santa, a program of The Boston Globe Foundation. His focus, he says, is finding the most compelling stories among the thousands of letters from families and donors. “These people are serious about what they’re doing,’’ he said, “and we should be serious in return.’’
As donations pour in, Sue Roberts processes the accounting, balances the books, responds to donor questions, and prepares listings of donors’ names for the newspaper.
Many contribute in honor of their children or grandchildren or in memory of a family member who has died.
“It’s very emotional for people,’’ she says. “I sometimes spend a lot of time on the phone with people crying because they’re trying to make this donation, and they can’t even speak the words. . . . You do what you can do.’’
Jeremy C. Fox can be reached at jeremy.fox@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @jeremycfox.
